Bathtub drain



Patented o... 24, 1933 UNITED STATES new Company, consin Kohler, Wis, acorporation of Wis- Original application June 19, 1931, Serial .No.545,441, Patent No. 1,867,725. Divided and this application June 30,1932. Serial N0. 620,070

3 Claims.

The invention relates to bathtubs and to drains therefor, and has for anobject the provision of a bathtub of simple construction having but fewparts and fittings, and so arranged as to facilitate the mounting andcleaning of the trap and the installation of the waste valve .and itsoperating means.

Another object of the invention is to'provide a bathtub having wastevalve operating means including a rod insertable through the overflowopening and passage to its operating position and having a lower endportion which is .detachably secured to a valve upwardly removable fromthe drain opening.

A further object of the invention is to provide a bathtub including anintegrally formed overflow passage having a plurality'of selectivelyusable outlets facing in different directions to facilitate connectionto a drain conduit.

A further object is to provide a bathtub having a drain opening which iscontrolled by a mechanically operated valve including a resilient rubbervalve element adapted to seat directly on the vitreous surface of thetub, thus avoiding the necessity for mounting a metal valve seat memberin the tub.

The invention further consists in the. several features hereinafter setforth-and more particularly defined by the annexed claims.

This case constitutes a division of application Serial No. 545,441,filed June 19, 1931, now matured into Patent No. 1,867,725..

In the accompanying drawing,

Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view of an end portion of a bathtubconstructed in accordance with the invention;

Fig. 2 is a detail bottom view of the tub, parts being broken away andparts being shown in section;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view thereof taken along the line 3-3 of Fig. 1,and

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional elevation of a modified form of wastevalve.

In the drawing, the numeral 10 designates a cast iron bathtub of thebuilt-in type having a vitreous enameled surface and having formedintegral therewith in the same casting the walls of an overflow passage11, which at its upper end communicates with the interior of the tubthrough an overflow opening 12. The lower walls of the overflow passageextend below the bottom of the bathtub and are there provided with aninternally threaded annular outlet 13, which is axially aligned with alarge drain opening 14 formed in the bottom wall of the tub.

The enameled surface of the downwardly con-. verging drain opening 14forms a valve seat engageable by the tapered side walls of an invertedcup shaped valve 31 of rubber or other suitable resilient material, thusobviating the necessity of fitting a metal valve seat member to the tub.The valve 31 is clamped between metal washers 32 and is secured by ascrew 83 to the upper end of a valve stem 24, the lower end of which hasa reduced threaded extension 35 detachably threaded into the lower endof a bent rod 22 extending upwardly within the overflow passage 11. Thevalve stem 3 is provided with radially extending verticaljwings 36 whichcenter the valve stem in the drain opening 14.

The rod 22 has a hook-shaped upper end 24, which is pivotally securedto'a crank pin. 25 carried on a rock shaft'26. The rock shaft 26isjournalled in a downwardly opening hood 27, which conceals the overflowopening 12 andis attached to the wall of the tub in any suitable manner.An operating handle 28 is secured to the outer end of-the' rock shaft26. The valveoperating rod 22 is introduced into place by being passedthrough the overflow opening 12 and downwardly within the overflowpassage 11.

When access is desired to interior passages and parts therein forpurposes of inspection or cleaning, it'is only necessary to unscrew thepop-up valve member 31, 34 from the rod 22 and to lift the valve memberout, thus permitting easy access to the passages through thecomparatively large drain opening in the bottom wall of the tub.

In addition to the downwardly opening outlet 13, the integrally formedoverflow passage is also provided with a rearwardly opening interiorlythreaded outlet 29 and a forwardly opening interiorly threaded outlet30, the latter being offset laterally from the outlet 13 and having aslight downward pitch, so that a pipe with an elbow attached'can beturned without interfering with the tub. The axes of the outlets 13 and29 are arranged at right angles to each other, and the outlet 29 is solocated that a pipe connected thereto will pass over the upper edge ofan adjacent floor beam. One of the threeoutlets is selected forconnection with the drain piping, the other two being closed by pipeplugs of conventional type. If a trap is desired, it can be attached tothe downwardly opening outlet 13. In this position, the trap can beswung about the vertical axis of the outlet to any angle in order tofacilitate connection with the drain pipe and to clear adjacent floorbeams. The connection to the sewer can be made from any angle which isnot possible with a drain of the usual type, in which connection is madeinto one side of a T communicating with the drain outlet and theoverflow. The trap may be readily cleaned from the inside of the tubthrough the large aligned drain openings after removing the valve 31,34.

The modified form of valve shown in Fig. 4 is similar except that thevalve element consists of a resilient rubber disk 31 which is adapted toseat on the enameled bottom surface of the tub about the drain opening14'.

The overflow, being cast integral with the tub,

eliminates the use or" all separate overflow pipes.

This results in a saving of expensive brass parts, considerably reducesthe time necessary for in stallation by reason of the lesser. number ofjoints and fittings which must be made, and also as there are lessjoints the tendency to leak is minimized. The construction is such as toeliminate the use of rubber-sealed joints, which become leaky when therubber deteriorates.

Since all working parts are accessible and removable from the inside ofthe tub, repairs can be made in the bathroom itself and it isunnecessary to disturb two rooms for this purpose, which is an importantfeature especially in hotels and apartment buildings. Furthermore, itrenders unnecessary the usual practice of providing a removable panel inthe wall of an adjoining room for access to the overflow and drainpiping when repairs or adjustments are to be made.

The drain passages may be easily cleaned through the large drain openingafter removing the valve. Because of the small amount of brass required,the outlet passages of the tub can be made considerably larger than isnow possible without material additional cost. This results The entireassembly can be packed inone package for shipping, which minimizes lossand damage and assures that'the fittings arrive at the job the same timeas the tub. This obviates the usual practice of shipping the brassfittings for the tubj'in a separate package.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A bathtub having a drain opening and an integral overflow passagecom'rmmicating with said opening, said overflow passagehaving aplurality of selectively usable outlets facing in different directions.

2. A bathtub having a drain opening and an integrally formed overflowpassage communicating with said opening, said over low passage having apair of selectively usable outlets respectively facing rearwardly andforwardly of the tub.

3. A bathtub having a drain opening and an integrally formed overflowpassage c0mrnunicata ing with said opening, said overflow passage havinga plurality of selectively usable outlets including a downwardlyfacing'outlet aligned with said drain opening and a pair of outletsrespec tively facing rearwardly and forwardly of the tub. V

FRANK BROTZ;

